The Buncombe County Board of Elections reviewed 6,215 signatures on a referendum petition and were able to verify 5,022. This exceeds the requirement of 5,000 valid signatures; therefore, the referendum petition has been declared valid.
This petition nullifies city council's earlier action to make city elections partisan pending a vote of the public. This year's elections will be nonpartisan and now unaffiliated candidates will be able to file as soon as the State Board of Elections or Superior Judge determines when the filing timeframe should be set.
Some members of the "Let Asheville Vote!" coalition composed a press release that has been posted to their website.
Leslee Kulba has turned in an excellent -- and accurate -- article for the Asheville Tribune recapping the events surrounding the petition drive.
"Petition Succeeds" WLOS Channel 13 News, July 31:
